You have supported and encouraged me for five and a half years in so many ways. You were there to give me strength and courage to take the next hurdle. You have comforted me through my tears and sadness and you have been patient when I was frustrated or angry. You've been my friend. Thank you so very much. – Family member
INQUEST was founded by families campaigning. This is its history, and is something that shapes the organisation to this day. The original campaigns were set up by the friends and family of Blair Peach, Jimmy Kelly and Liddle Towers after deaths following contact with the police, and Mathew O’Hara and Richard Campbell following deaths in prison.
Campaigning in the 1970s and 80s was quite different to now. There was no e-mail, internet or social media, no mobile phones or digital cameras, but the desire to pursue truth, justice, accountability or simply an apology remains the same. Many families find that campaigning can help.
Some families want to be involved in doing something to prevent future deaths, make the state more accountable, improve the process of investigation, make the inquest system better, or to join together with others to find strength and support. But for others, campaigning can be exhausting, especially at the early stages of an inquest and may become a more realistic ambition once the inquest has finished. Some families, rather than run an individual campaign, prefer to contribute their experience to help INQUEST’s campaigns and speak about their relative’s death at parliamentary meetings, seminars for policymakers and with the media (see Sections 2.1 Working with MPs and other policymakers, 2.2 Working with other families and 2.3 Using the Media above).
What does it mean to be a campaigner, and how might you get involved?
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations defines campaigning like this:
‘Organised actions around a specific issue seeking to bring about changes in the policy and behaviours of institutions and/or specific public groups…the mobilising of forces by organisations and individuals to influence others in order to effect an identified and desired social, economic, environmental or political change.’
All campaigns start with the same basic idea: to make a change socially, economically, environmentally or politically. For example, INQUEST believes families should be at the centre of the inquest process so it campaigns for radical improvements in the way that coroners’ courts work. This type of campaigning is different but complementary to family campaigns INQUEST is involved with which usually try to make sure that the state and those who have a duty of care are accountable, truthful and that justice is seen to be done in individual deaths.
Anyone can campaign, from individuals, families, communities and political / faith groups to bigger organisations whose job it is to change the way we look at things. Starting a campaign is a big job, but anyone can take part in a campaign, and as your experience and skills increase so will your ability to do more if you wish to.
The diagram below outlines just some of the different strands that make up a campaign. As you will see, some require specific skills while others simply need time and energy.
The tactics you use will depend on how much campaigning you want to do, whether you want to take part in an existing family or community campaign or whether you want to start a campaign of your own. You can do as little or as much as you want. Before you make any commitment to the idea of a campaign, make sure you consider what the aims of the campaign are, consider how much time you want to spend on it and what kind of support you might need.
If you decide to start up your own campaign, decide what it is you want to achieve. This will then help you decide who needs to help you, what tactics you use, and what exactly you want people to do when they have seen your web site, read your leaflet or heard you speak at a public meeting. Whenever possible, your campaign should have a clear call for action. This could be joining your group, sending a letter, signing a petition, or attending a public event.
